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' lhvirsn STATES PATENT @rrrcn.

GEORGE H. IMMENDORF, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO HENRY G. MORRIS, OF SAME PLACE.

DRIER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 296,572, dated April 8, 1884. Application filedApril 10,1223. (No model.)

.To all whom it may concern;

Be it known that I, GEORGE H. Imrnnnonn,

of the city and county of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Driers, of which improvements the following is aspeciiication.

The object of my invention is to provide an apparatus of simple and inexpensive construction by the use of which grain, berries,

gravel, or analogous solid matter in a more or series of deflecting-plates located within the chute, a coolingchamber, mechanism for in" creasing or diminishing the volume of the chute, and mechanism for forcing or drawing a current of air through the casing and chute.

The improvements claimed are hereinafter fully set forth.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a vertical longitudinal section through a drier embodying my invention, at the line :0 m of Fig. 3; Fig. 2, a vertical transverse section through the same at the line y y of Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a horizontal section at the line 2: of Fig. 1; Fig. 4, a vertical section through a portion of the chute, showing the application of the deflecting-plates; and Fig. 5 is a sectional detail representing the arrangement of cooling-chamber.

In the practice of my invention I provide a vertical or inclined casing, A, which communicates at its top with an air-discharge pipe or flue, a, and at its bottom with an air-supply trunk or nozzle, a. The casing A is formed, preferably, of sheet metal, and is substantially air-tight throughout. A chute or channel, B, the sides of which are grated, perforated, or formed of wire-netting, extendslongitudinally through the casing A, said chute communicating at its top with a feed-hopper, b, to which the material to be dried is supplied, and be in g provided at bottom with a discharge-valve, b, which in the instance illustrated consists of a plate having a series of slots, which is adapted to be moved over a stationary slotted plate at the bottom of the chute, so as to regulate or/ entirely shut off the opening for discharge, as may be required.

In order to enable the volume of the chute B to be increased or diminished at pleasure,

in accordance with the quantity of material which is to be passed through it, one of its sides, If, is, in lieu of being permanently se cured to the casing, connected thereto by a link or links, I)", and is adapted to be moved toward and from the opposite side by adjusting-screws h or other suitable means for efiecting its movement from the outside of the casing. The links serve to maintain the side b of the chute in vertical position irrespective of the adj usting-screws 11*, which may be wholly withdrawn. A series of heater-pipes, O, to which steam or hot air is supplied through a nozzle, 0, and which are connected by manifolds or return-bends, so as to effect a circulation of the heating medium through the entire series, is arranged within the casing A and supply-trunk a between the vertical side of the casing adjacent to the supply-trunk and the chute B, and a fan or pressure blower, D, is located adjacent to the outer end of the supply-trunk, so as to force a continuous current of air into the same during the operation of the drier, the air so supplied finding its only exit through the chute B to the opposite side of the casing, and thence outwardly through the disehargepipe a.

It will be obvious that an exhaust fan connected to the discharge-pipe may be substituted for the pressure-blower shown with an equivalent effect.

In order to increase as far as may be the duration of the exposure of the grain or other material which is to be dried to the action of the air passing through the casing A, a series of inclined deflecting-plates, b, Fig. 4, may be arranged Within the chute B on shafts passing through the side of the casing A and bearing in apertures or slots formed therein, the retardation of the movement of the material being proportionate to the greater or less adjusted inclination of the deflecting-plates relatively to a vertical plane.

The dried material may be discharged from the valve 1) into a car, E, or to a conveyor,

elevator, or other suitable mechanism for conveying it to a place of storage.

In operation the grain or other material supplied to the hopper b, and thence to the chute B, is subjected in its passage through the' latter to the action of the air, which is forced into the trunk a by the fan D and heated by the pipes 0, said heated air in its passage through the chute B to the dischargepipe (I. removing the moisture from the material and discharging the same through the pipe at.

In some instances it maybe desirable to cool the dried material after the removal of the moisture, and in such case the supplytrunk and heating-pipes are caused to enter the casing at a point sufficiently above its bottom to enable its lower end to be extended, so as to form a cooling-chamber,which may be subjected to the action of air or other cooling mediums of any desired temperature. Thus, in Fig. 5 A represents the casing having its lower portion extended to form a chamber, 1), which is cooled by means of water circulated arounda space formed by ajacket, q. the grain being removed from the coolingchambers through any suitable outlet or discharge.

I am aware that it has been proposed in drier-s to employ a vertical concentric grain chute in a case open at the top and a blower or fan at one side of the caseto force the dry ing medium up through the case; but in such construction the arrangement of case, chute, and blower was such that it was impossible to exposethe entire body of grain to the action of the drying medium.

I am furtheraware that it has been proposed to locate ducts transversely in a grain-chute, so as to exhaust a drying medium through them; but my invention will be distinguished from the above in that in thearrangement and construction described the entire volume of drying medium is compelled to pass through the falling grain.

I claim 1. The combination, substantially as set forth, of a closed casing having an air-discharge pipe at one of its sides, a cooling or heating supply trunk or nozzlelocated on the opposite side, a grated or perforated grain chute or channel provided with a supply-hopper and passing through the casing, and afan or blower for effecting the passage of a current of air from the said supply trunk or nozzle through the grain-chute to the said air-discharge pipe.

2. The combination, substantially as set forth, of a closed casing having an air-dis charge pipe on one of its sides, a cooling or heating supply trunk or nozzle located on the opposite side, a grated or perforated grain chute or channel provided with a supply-hopper, and passing through the casing, a series of pipes connecting with said supply trunk or nozzle for circulating the heating or cooling medium, and located between said supply trunk or nozzle and the grain-chute, and a fan or blower for effecting a current of air from the said supply-trunk between the circulatingpipes and through. the grainchute to the air discharge pipe.

3. The combination, substantially as set forth, of a casing, a fan or blower for effecting the passage of a current of air through said casing, and a grated or perforated chute or channel passing through the casing, and having one or more of its sides made movable and adjustable, so as to increase or diminish its transverse area and volume at pleasure.

4.. The combination, substantially as set forth, of a casing having a series of heaterpipes therein, a fan or blower for effecting the passage of a current of air through the casing, a grated or 'ierforated'chute or channel passing through the casing, and a series of inclined deflecting-plates adjustable. as described, located within said chute or channel.

5. The combination, substantially as set forth, of a casing having a series of heaterpipes therein, a fan or blower for effecting the passage of a current of air through the casing and through a grated or perforated chute or channel passing through said casing, and a cooling-chamber formed by an extension of V the casing beyond the ends ofthe heater-pipes.

GEORGE H. IMMENDORF.

WVitnesses:

I. HAOKEL, Bicrrn. H. REILLY. 

